We Are A Green Leader

Dine Green. Think Green. Eat Green.

Sustainability at Picasso’s Café Picasso’s Café, Bakery & Catering Co. is located in Irwindale’s Gateway Business Center, newly renovated with all-natural sustainable landscape design architectures. Our outside dining has a sustainable design that allows the influence of the local foothill and river ecology to express itself in imagery and ecological systems. The result is a renewed connection of Picasso’s guests and customers to the natural world and a sustainable site design. Throughout our outside dining and the Gateway Business Center, you will find Southern California Native trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowers that enhance the sustainability of the soil and environment. The elements used within the Center are all local stones, recycled steel and recycled wood. Our patio has been designed to collect rainfall, use solar powered energy, and allow for bio infiltration spaces.

Since Picasso’s Café is located in such an environmentally powered atmosphere, it’s almost impossible for us not to stay as environmentally safe as possible. We have such great partners such as Southern California Edison and all of our friends at Edison’s Energy Education Center-Irwindale, who oversee our energy use and intake. In our partnership, Edison has made sure we use only the best energy efficient utilities and equipment, such as energy saving light bulbs, sensory light systems, and our main dining room cooling systems.

At Picasso’s, we do a lot of all these things, and other activities such as buying dishwashers and food making equipment that use less water and energy, and using energy efficient light bulbs throughout our facility. Our latest energy saving project is our brand new Air Conditioning system for our main dining restaurant area. This project (debuted in January 2011) is part of SCE’s Emerging Technologies program and was offered to Picasso’s Cafe, Irwindale with the goal of assessing a new cooling technology to evaluate energy savings potential in a real world application. If proven successful at Picasso’s, this innovative cooling technology will potentially save energy and operating costs for SCE customers in the future. The unit offers an environmentally responsible choice because it uses a considerably less amount of energy to run. This technology takes advantage of evaporative cooling effects of water, but it cools without raising indoor humidity. This approach has the potential to save energy consumption and peak demand at commercial facilities.

So what does that mean for Picasso’s Café? For us, it’s being committed to using organic and sustainable products. View our Farmer’s Market photo album here. Picasso’s Café uses only the freshest, organically grown ingredients from local farmers. And, it’s using recycled and recyclable materials. And further still, it’s finding food and other catering essentials within our region, thus reducing their carbon footprint by eliminating the need to transport products over long distances. Declaring Picasso’s Café as a green or environmentally conscious caterer is a plus because it’s become sustainable for the future. Our clients want and expect “green” and it is our pleasure to deliver their expectations.

Click here to learn more information about getting Plug-in Electric Vehicle Ready!
Click here for more information about Power Electric Vehicles Resources and the Charge Point Network.Don’t Forget: SCE, Irwindale Charging Station is located at 6090 N. Irwindale Ave., just two doors down from Picasso’s Cafe!Click here to learn more information about Free Seminars & Training at SCE’s Energy Education Center, Irwindale
where Picasso’s Cafe, Bakery & Catering Co. is the Exclusive Caterer for over 22 years!

Coming Soon:
• On site herb garden
• Composting facility for left over food and waste

Picasso’s Green in our administrative offices:

Plastic Scissors

Recycle our Inkjet cartridges

Recycle all paper products

Buy only recycle paper products

Recycled paper marketing materials

Energy Efficiency Lighting in all offices, storage rooms, and kitchen with auto light sensor turn off features

We use e-fax thus saving paper

We utilize live office plants for our décor to remove carbon monoxide in our offices

We recycle our unused and aged cell phones.

Picasso’s Green in our sanitation efforts:

We now use only eco-friendly cleaning products for our dishwashing, laundry soap, floors

Picasso’s Green in our advertising and marketing:

We provide electronic menus and email marketing and blasts correspondence rather than printed direct mail pieces

We use post consumer paper

We use soy based inks

Picasso’s Green in Catering off site events:

We use and promote solar power generators for our off-site events

We use recycled carpets instead of turf for our flooring

We use B20 generators (saving on power)

We promote the rental of glassware made of recycled glass

We promote full recycling programs at catered events for all glass and bottles.

We promote the use of “natural” event sites for corporate events such as parks, foothill mountain sites & beaches reducing the need for excess décor as the natural background becomes the décor

We use organic and seasonal or locally grown flowers, or use potted plants as décor at our events.

We use seed embedded menu cards at outdoor events that guests can plant after the event is over

Picasso’s Green in Transportation:

We carpool with our employees to our events

We promote and coordinate our guests’ transportation to events in “eco-limo” (green limos)

Picasso’s Green in Entertainment venues for our café and events:

We use acoustic groups and low-energy groups as our preferred entertainers for our guests and events

We promote the use of LIVE sculptors, models, and artists tying in with our branding

Picasso’s Green Water bottled water conservation efforts:

In the café, we offer complimentary organic fruit water out of a re-usable glass dispenser for all our guest to enjoy in eco-friendly cups (in an effort to eliminates bottles)

At our catered events, we encourage the use of water pitchers and dispensers instead of individual bottles waters served with eco-friendly cups.

Picasso’s Green In the Café/Picasso’s Go Green Café Promos:

In 2009, we launched ECO- Hour daily in our café where any Picasso’s Café customer can bring in their own cup and receive FREE Starbucks coffee from 9-10AM daily to promote sustainability to the environment.

We use recycled bags for packaging to-go orders, and recycled cups, lids, sleeves, napkins, and packaging
We have a complete recycling program in our café for plastics, aluminum, glass, newspapers, mail, bottles and paper.

Picasso’s Green in Vendor Choices:

We partner with certified Green Vendors, such as Classic Rentals, certified as the greenest rental company in the nation

We partner with “The Spiraled Stem”-venflora certified green florist

We are a supporter and customer of The Maui Culinary Academy which we have an important affiliation and deep affection. We seasonally offer food products made at the Academy for sale at our retail store and web-site including the Maui Culinary Academy Cookbook which support the students and items produced on the island of Maui, Hawaii.

We offer in our operations Maui Gold Pineapple Company which we proudly serve Sweet Hawaiian Pineapple to our customers which have been grown in the rich clay soil only found on the island of Maui. Maui Pineapple Company is native to Hawaii and dedicated to providing field fresh, tasty pineapples to the world, while maintaining a sustainable environment and preserving resources for its community.

We are supportive of the local Fresh Hawaiian Fisheries in their goal of ocean and planet conservation. We have found that the efforts to protect the environment are more aggressive in individual, local and Hawaiian state levels than those which are mandated in Western and Eastern waters. The end result by having cleaner oceans, beautiful fish & seafood’s migrate and live results in a fresher, healthier center of the plate which our customers frequent and enjoy.

The choice is yours. Picasso’s, we are now offering eco-friendly, compostable corporate products in an effort to be environmentally responsible. By choosing to use these products instead of the traditional black resin products at your next corporate event, or when dining in our Café, you can help reduce actual waste and reduce the strain on the environment.

Even with our new eco-friendly, compostable products, it is important to note we will not sacrifice sanitation and food safety for the sake of eco-friendliness. Our single-serve products actually reduce excess waste by delivering the exact amount of product that is needed for each customer.

Eco-Products Cold Cups are 100% compostable and eco-friendly. Unlike petroleum-based cold cups that depend on oil and don’t compost, this strong and durable cup is made from PLA plastic and derived from U.S. grown corn.

PLA Portion Cups are made from 100% corn plastic. These souffle cups are fully compostable in a commercial composting environment and will be used in our box lunches.

Lunch and Dinner Napkins are 100% recycled, unlike napkins made of virgin paper pulp. Recycled content napkins are just as strong and feel no different than regular napkins.

PLA Plastic Serving Bowls are better than plastic. These containers are compostable and are made from PLA corn plastic with renewable sources.

Chinet™ Classic White Premium Strength Plate is recognized everywhere as a quality product you can rely on for superior strength. When you are enjoying a plate full of picnic favorites, this plate will match your needs. It is made of 99% reclaimed fiber and is certified biodegradable.

Eco-Products Heavyweight Cutlery is 100% compostable and eco-friendly. Say goodbye to plastic utensils and hello to this new disposable utensil choice. They are made from non-GMO vegetable starch and are OK compost certified. Under commercial composting, these biodegradable utensils break down in 95 days.

Eco-Products Cold Cups are 100% compostable and eco-friendly. Unlike petroleum-based cold cups that depend on oil and don’t compost, this strong and durable cup is made from PLA plastic and derived from U.S. grown corn.

Eco-Products Straws are 100% compostable and eco-friendly. Similar to the compostable cold cups, these green, eco-friendly straws are made of PLA plastic and derived from corn.

Aluminum & Bottle Recycling Program is included with every event that includes beverages. Special garbage cans that are clearly marked “Recycle Cans & Bottles ONLY” will be sent out to your event in order to promote the recycling of pop cans and water bottles. These receptacles will be located appropriately and emptied throughout the event by our staff. Recycled cans and bottles will then be returned to our building for the final recycling service.

Propane Gas is used at all of our events for grill cooking. By using propane instead of charcoal, the actual burning and heating process is cleaner. There is no soot or waste that can be released into the environment.

Call, click or come on in to Picasso's Cafe Today!
Our Cafe and reservation line is 626-969-6100

Coming in with a big party? Need to get in and out in a hurry? Call us at 1-626-969-6100 or click here to contact us, make a reservation, or order online.